Dare to be unconventional!

4 January 2016No Comment

Monica Kochar

A classroom scene

“Multiply 244 by 12”, the teacher said.
And the students went fast, multiplying the following way.

2 4 4
X 1 2
4 8 8
2 4 4 0
2 9 2 8

Excitedly some students shouted, “Answer is 2928 Ma’am!”
“Excellent”, said the teacher!
A slow voice among the students asked, “Why do we write a 0. Why do we shift numbers”?
The teacher said, thinking of ‘syllabus’, “It is a rule. Just do it.”
And the teacher just became a ‘math murderer instead of a math creator”.

Are you a math murderer or creator?
Math murderers stifle curiosity in the students. Math creators not only satisfy it, but also show math as a creative subject. Which one are you?

I am reminded of a teacher at one of my workshops who said at the end of the workshop, “Just today I have discovered that I am a math murderer and not a creator. Give me at least three days to digest this and move on!”

The author creates various kinds of multi-sensory learning environments for mathematics classes whereby learning the subject becomes a fun-filled experience. Her USP is her capacity to see the child’s learning perspective in any situation. Now, she uses this extremely important element while working with adults in the zones of teacher training, content development, testing, and writing. She can be reached through her website www.humanemaths.com.